Architecture - Central Asia - page 446

ARCHITECTURAL HIGHLIGHTS
The following are our picks of the architectural highlights of Central Asia:
Ismail Samani Mausoleum (p193) (900-1000) Mesmerising brickwork, in Bukhara.
Kalon Minaret (p192) (1127) Central Asia's mot impressive minaret, at 48m high, in
Bukhara.
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar (p390) (1157) A huge double-domed Seljuq monument,
in Merv.
Shah-i-Zinda (p173) (1300-1400) Features Central Asia's mot tunning and varied
tilework, in Samarkand.
Bibi-Khanym Mosque (p173) (1399-1404) Timur's intended materpiece, so colossal
that it collapsed as soon as it was inished, in Samarkand.
Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum (p174) (1404) An exquisite ribbed dome, sheltering the tomb
of Timur, in Samarkand.
Ak-Saray Palace (p181) (1400-50) Tantalising remains of Timur's once-opulent palace,
in Shakhrisabz.
The Regitan (p171) (1400-1600) An epic ensemble of medressas, in Samarkand. The
Sher Dor (1636) launts Islamic tradition by depicting two lions chasing deer, looked
down upon by a Mongol-faced sun.
Lyabi-Hauz (p189) (1600) A delightful complex featuring a pool, khanaka (pilgrim ret-
house) and medressa, in Bukhara.
Char Minar (p194) (1807) A quirky ex-gateway, resembling a chair thrut upside down
in the ground, in Bukhara.

Architectural Design
The traditional cities of Bukhara and especially Khiva reveal the most
about traditional urban structure. The distinction between ark (for-
tified citadel), shahristan (inner city with wealthy residential neigh-
bourhoods, bazaars and city wall) and outlying rabad (suburbs) has
formed the structure of settlements since the first Central Asian towns
appeared 4000 years ago. A second outer city wall surrounded most
cities, protecting against desert storms and brigands.
Apart from Islamic religious construction, secular architecture
includes palaces (such as the Tosh-Hovli in Khiva), ark (forts), ham-
mom (multidomed bathhouses) , rabat (caravanserais) , tim ( shopping
arcades) , tok (or tak; covered crossroad bazaars) and the local hauz
(reservoirs) that supplied the cities with their drinking water.
Mosques
Islam dominates Central Asian architecture. Masjid (mosques) trace
their earliest design back to the house of the Prophet Mohammed.
Common to most is the use of the portal, which leads into a colonnad-
ed space and a covered area for prayer. Some Central Asian mosques,
such as the Bolo-Hauz Mosque in Bukhara, have a flat, brightly paint-
ed roof, supported by carved wooden columns, while others, such as
the Juma Mosque in Khiva, are hypostyle (that is, with a roofed space
supported by many pillars).
Whether the place of worship is a guzar (local mosque), serving the
local community, a jami masjid (Friday mosque), built to hold the en-
tire city congregation once a week, or a namazgokh (festival mosque),
the focal point is always the mihrab , a niche that indicates the di-

Unesco
World
Heritage
Sites
Khiva's Old City,
Uzbekistan
Bukhara,
Uzbekistan
Samarkand,
Uzbekistan
Shakhrisabz,
Uzbekistan
Mausoleum of
Kozha Akhmed
Yasaui,
Kazakhstan
Konye-Urgench,
Turkmenistan
Ancient Merv,
Turkmenistan
Solomon's
Throne,
Kyrgyzstan